Bob Nolan as the Durango Kid
Kenneth MacDonald, Charles Starrett and Bob Nolan with Raider.
(The Calin Coburn Collections ©2004)
The Durango Kid (1940) was not originally intended to be the first of the long series of Columbia Pictures' "Durango Kid" movies that appeared in the mid-40s; it was just one of the simple B-westerns that featured Starrett with the Sons of the Pioneers. The idea of a masked hero arriving in time to right injustice has always appealed. The film was popular with the youngsters and so, in 1945, Columbia tested the waters with another along similar lines, The Return of the Durango Kid. It was an immediate success and the Durango Kid series continued until 1952 - but now without the Sons of the Pioneers.
In this photo from the first Durango Kid film, Bob Nolan masquerades as the masquerader. He dons the Durango Kid's costume and holds up the stage containing the real Durango Kid and the villain.
The film sequence can be viewed on the Videos page. The entire film is enjoyable - fun to watch, especially for Bob Nolan fans.
